One Entity
by mika-miatsu
Summary: Since the day he rose from his shadow, he has lived within him. He has watched his every move, felt his every feeling, desire, wish; The worst part of it all, is that he doesn't even realize it. They are one entity. UPDATING SOON -july 12 09
1. Prologue

I have this dream…

I was walking in a beautiful…No, magnificent, meadow. The cherry blossoms made a light canopy above me, and separated the sun's rays to shimmer onto the morning dew. I was walking alone…But I felt in good company. The gentle whisper of a nearby lake pushed any stress and worries behind me.

As I traveled deeper into this meadow, I began to see changes. These changes were gradual; a fallen tree here and there, a dead animal, weeds…Until I had walked into a barren wasteland. But I did not turn back. I moved forward…I was curious.

The once lush grass had given away to dark sand. I observed wilting roses and tulips, lying so curtly before the limestone stones. The names engraved onto the solemn objects were fading…I had stumbled into a graveyard.

Why were these poor souls taken from the world of the living? That question plagued my mind…It was as if deep inside, I knew the answer.

I did not bother to read the names on the stones… I was afraid that I would recognize them. I _knew_ I would recognize them. I instead ignored them, and continued forward…I was a mindless puppet…My only goal was to press on; it was all I could focus on…

But I wanted to run; Far, far away from that place. I wanted to return to the secluded meadow, where I felt safe…I felt whole. I only felt fear and guilt here.

I finally stopped in front of a stone well centered in the graveyard. I still had no control over my movements. I wanted to close my eyes and look away from the water, but It was no use…I gazed at the reflection. What I saw resembled me…But I saw one difference. It was the one difference that made my knees quiver, and my heart ache…

It was his eyes. They were locked onto me. They held me in place, held my tongue…Stifled my scream. The yellow orbs were so cold…so still…They were dead. This couldn't be my reflection…I couldn't be this…this _monster_….

_Who killed those people on the gravestones, Shadow?_

His voice sent a chill through my body…I felt my hands shake. However, I knew that it was his question that had rendered me so ill…

_I did…_

_And why did you do it? I thought they were you're friends…_

His voice was so mocking…So disgusting.

_You asked it of me._

_And why did you listen?_

I did not answer this question immediately. His eyes were burning mine…They began to water. My hand touched the reflection automatically, the ripples blurring my source of pain only for a moment. But I didn't want to give him what he wanted. If I answered his question, I would have been admitting defeat…No. I couldn't let him win.

_Why did you listen to me, Shadow!?_

His voice was stronger now. He was screaming. It made me weak…I wanted to collapse. I had no choice. I had no choice now. I needed to respond…I was dying.

…_We are one entity._


	2. The Heroes Return

**Disclaimer: **_I _obviously don't own the Sonic the Hedgehog games, or Archie comics. It would be pretty cool if I did…

**o.OO.oo.OO.oo.OO.oo.OO.oo.OO.oo**

The scent of cinnamon toast overpowered all others in the Rose household. The small hedgehog tied her short, flowing hair into a tiny bun, and went on to butter the toast sleepily. She had not gotten any sort of sleep the entire week, and instead woke extra early to serve her guest breakfast to preoccupy herself.

_Why are those two taking so long…?_ Amy sighed and carried the two plates of warm toast into the living room, not bothering to waken the purple mongoose. The aroma usually did the trick.

She could faintly remember Sonic appearing at her door step, and handing her the two chaos emeralds; blue and red, the colors of the two heroes. He had told her that they were off to fight Eggman, as he was up to his old tricks again. They had decided not to bring any emeralds.

"_Amy, you KNOW if we bring the emeralds, they are just gonna get stolen, and we'll have an even bigger problem like always. Just take care of them till we get back, kay?"_ She couldn't argue with his logic…Or that infectious, childish grin of his. She had agreed to safeguard the weapons of the two heroes, and wait for Sonic's brave return like some sort of expectant army wife…The only problem is, they hadn't returned. Normally the doctor was a synch to defeat. But, it had been weeks, and neither she nor anyone else had heard a word from them.

She let out another sigh, turning to see her friend stir from the bread's piercing smell. She smiled, never expressing in words how grateful she was for her company the past few weeks. It was even strange to her, since prior their communication had been very limited. Now she seemed as if she had known her for her entire life. "Heh…You know, you should stop sleeping on the couch! I've got a guest bedroom, ya know…"

Mina yawned and stretched, yanking out her tie to release her long, violet, wavy hair. She grinned at her new roommate, and daintily took a small bite of her breakfast. "Thanks…But you never know…What if they come back?? I want to be right there waiting if they suddenly walk through the door!"

Amy nibbled on her toast, staring intently at the sleepy mongoose with suspicious, sapphire orbs. She had known Mina as a previous crush to Sonic, and she wasn't about to loose a chance at him, helpful girl or not! She considered the purple one serious competition. "Oh? You seem really, really eager for them to come back, huh…"

Mina paused and held her toast, raising a brow at her jealous roommate. "Uh, well…Yeah? Aren't you?"

"Yes!! But what I want to know is why YOU are so determined to see him before me!! You had your chance now-"

Mina growled and put her toast down. She hated it, oh so much, when she got like this. "Amy, first of all, im eager to see them BOTH, because, in case you didn't notice, Sonic isn't doing this alone. And I hate telling you so many times that I'm not interested in breaking up your weird obsession with him…"

Amy drew in a deep breath and then frowned. "I'm sorry Mina…I shouldn't take out my anger on you. Im just so…worried about him! And I don't say this enough but…Thank you… If you weren't here, id probably be going batty with worry…You're lucky, you know that Mina? Being in love sucks…"

"Yeah…I bet it really does." Mina smiled back at her, and then brought back the sweet toast to meet her lips. Although Amy had become a sister to her, she was too afraid to tell her the truth; to tell her that she _did_ understand, and that she did know the feeling. She didn't want to confess that she slept on the couch, sickened with worry of his safe return, and to see that same etched face she had fallen in love with instantly. She did, however, confess one truth to Amy…

It wasn't Sonic she had fallen for.

**o.OO.oo.OO.oo.OO.oo.OO.oo.OO.oo**

"You didn't have to dive in and interfere, hedgehog…I told you I had it under control!!"

The dark hedgehog cringed as he rubbed his fractured arm softly. The fur surrounding it had turned stiff with dried blood—the small towel holding it in place didn't help much. He kept pace with a smirking Sonic, and he suddenly wished his good punching arm wasn't out.

"Aww! Come on, Shadow! You KNOW that if I didn't come to your rescue you'd have more than just one broken arm!"

He groaned and kept pace with him. He would have rather died than be saved by such a person…It virtually had deprived him of all pride. But just being a damsel in distress isn't what had been bothering him the most.

The duo, despite their valiant efforts, had lost. Shadow could not comprehend it. Neither he nor Sonic ever witnessed Eggman so…Ruthless. It was as if the doctor had lost all boundaries, and had converted to a mindless, murderous brute. The way in which he handled the fight…his movements…It was all too inhuman.

"It was a good thing we did not bring the emeralds…"

Sonic flashed the dark hedgehog a grin, and coyly crossed his arms. "Well, you _are_ working with the genius, here…I had a feeling the fat man had a pretty good collection of emeralds, and with his performance these past days, he would have completed it with ours. And god knows what he would want to do with them this time."

Shadow rolled his eyes. "That couldn't have been the doctor. I've worked with him, and I know first hand that he isn't able to move that fast."

The cocky hedgehog shrugged and continued towards the Station Square city limit. "Well in any case don't worry about it. Im gonna talk to Tails and see what he thinks, and then we'll just have to find his fatass…again. But seriously, be happy, Shadow! We are probably gonna get a huggee welcome party, I'll get all the girls, and you might, I don't know…Well, you can watch!"

"Screw you, Sonic." He groaned at the hedgehog's roaring laughter, and concentrated more on the problem at hand. He wasn't able to simply throw it towards the back of his head.

Usually, the doctor was more concerned about making a show of his latest inventions, so it was fairly easy to defeat the overzealous fool.

Shadow shuddered. He had been knocked out cold by Eggman's robots, and was a sitting duck, a bullet on course for his chest. The ultimate life form had been rendered motionless; anchored to the ground. His white fur was nothing but a stationary bull's-eye to the weapon…Had it not been for the idiot walking beside him right now, he would have been dead. He would have to thank him for that…Someday.

"Hello, Shadow? You aren't having another flashback, are you!? If you are, then wake up, we're at my place. And I cannot wait to call up everyone…This party's gonna be _the_ shit…."


	3. The Truth

**Disclaimer: I** don't own the Sonic the Hedgehog games, or Archie comics. Or…do I?

**o.OO.oo.OO.oo.OO.oo.OO.oo.OO.oo**

The young fox was the very first to hear the news. He had stammered when he heard his voice across the receiver, and dropped the phone immediately to catch the earliest train leaving from his workshop in the ruins to the bustling city of Station Square.

Tails arrived at the Hedgehog's apartment in minutes, and delayed no longer in giving his friend and idol a gigantic bear hug…He was far too happy to act manly.

"Haha calm down Tails! We are both fine…Well, though I think you should take a look at Shadow's arm later."

Shadow glared at the hedgehog and turned his head slightly away from the warm reunion. "I'm fine. We apologize for our long absence, but we underestimated the doctor, and we couldn't teleport here without the emeralds, of course."

Tails raised an eye brow. "Wow, really? Eggman was always a joke to you guys."

"Well, the fat man got just a tiny bit better. But let's not talk about that right now. Im sure everyone else is worried about us, so I say we throw a _huge_ welcome home party!!"

Tails laughed. "I should have known you might say that. But you're right! Let's go see Amy first though. Mina tells me she's been _dying_ to see you."

"Alright, Kiddo. Let me grab some of my stuff though…You can wait outside, Shad. It'll be quick."

Shadow rolled his eyes. "Gladly…" He turned sharply around and headed outside of the apartment towards a nearby bench. He didn't much care for the hedgehog's décor. The walls were lined with newspaper articles, each having the hero's face in the front page, describing some good deed he had done. The articles themselves were not what disgusted him…It was the fact that the hedgehog hung them throughout his home, gloating.

"I should wait with Shadow and keep him company I guess. I'll see you in a few."

Sonic shook his head and pulled the fox back. "No Tails. I gotta talk to you…alone."

"Ah…I see. What's wrong? You don't wanna see Amy? Come on, Sonic…She misses you, and-"

"No, no!! It's much more serious than that. Look Tails, we have to be careful. Shadow isn't safe to be around with right now, and he doesn't even know it. Do you remember when I snuck into Shadow's place that one night to play a prank on him?"

Tails gave Sonic a disapproving look "You did _what_?"

"That's not important right now! Listen, I heard him talking in his sleep. He was having some kind of nightmare from what I could tell. When I walked into his room to get a better look, I saw him ripping his sheets, breaking things… I would have thought that was a normal dream for such a guy, but what I heard made me understand. He sounded angry, possessed…All he said was _Mephiles_."

Tails widened his eyes in shock and took a seat, eager to hear the entire story. "But wait…Why are you telling me this now, then? You could have told me way before you two went to go fight Eggman…"

Sonic shrugged and looked down blankly. "Well, to tell you the truth I really didn't know what to make of it at the time. I guess you could say I was in denial. I couldn't believe that the guy could still be alive…After all we went through to stop him. And I knew that Shad shared some kind of special connection with him…Mephiles _did_ use him to take on a physical form…But still, I wasn't ready to believe that he could take such control of him, too."

"So since that day, I ignored it. Don't gimme that look, I know it was irresponsible…But when I learned that Eggy was up to no good, I asked Shadow to come help me out so I could observe him and maybe…Maybe prove myself wrong."

"I convinced him to leave his emerald with the girls, too. I got him to do that by telling him the same thing I told you guys; that Eggman would just try to take them anyway…But, truthfully, it was more of a precaution…I didn't fully trust Shadow at nights with emeralds nearby."

Tails leaned forward eagerly, fully occupied in the story. "Well so?? Were you wrong?"

Sonic grinned at his attentiveness. "No, no I wasn't. When we would camp for the nights, I heard him again. I couldn't really understand anything else clearly except when he uttered Mephiles' name. It was kind of creepy…But throughout the first weeks before we found Eggman, that's all he would do…He would never squirm or act violent like he did when I first saw him at his apartment."

"Anyway, we eventually found the fat guy. Contrary to what Shadow thinks and what he told you, Eggman was actually a synch to beat. I beat him by myself."

Tails scratched the back of his head, confused. "I don't follow…"

"I'm _getting_ to it!" The hedgehog sighed. "Anyway…He never actually saw Eggman at all. The night before, Shadow just…Well…His eyes…looked exactly like _his_. And before I could even ask him what was wrong, He just attacked me. I didn't know how to wake him up, and I didn't want to hurt him…It was surreal."

"He only woke up when I finally defended myself and swung him into a rock…I didn't realize I had broken his arm, I didn't mean to…But he was just so powerful, I had to do something…" Sonic took a deep breath and leaned against the fox's wall and frowned; ashamed." When he regained consciousness, I fabricated that whole Eggman story, and that is what he believes right now.

"I'm telling this to you Tails because I've known you for so long…I trust you. I think its best he doesn't know about this. If Shadow is having some kind of freaky mind link with Mephiles, it is only going to do more damage to him and to others if he knows it. You and I can research this, find Mephiles, and stop this whole mess before it gets worse."

Tails sat in a chair, resting his furry chin on his knuckles. His surrogate brother never ceased to amaze him. "Alright. I will start researching this tomorrow, and I'll be in contact with you if I find anything new. It will also be useful to install some hidden cameras in his room and try to record what is going on. I'll leave that installation to you, seeing as how you strangely were able to break in so easily the first time…"

Sonic snickered and headed towards the door. "Heh well…I have my ways. At any rate, let's get going before Shadow gets suspicious. We've been here way longer than just a few minutes…"

Tails nodded in agreement and hopped onto his feet, following the blue hedgehog down his apartment steps. "Are you sure we shouldn't inform the others though? I mean, if he is dangerous…"

Sonic stifled a laugh. "Tails…Shadow is the most withdrawn individual out there, a damn brick wall. He pretty much wanders around alone all day, and goes straight to sleep at night. I don't think we need to worry about anyone being in danger for a while."

**o.OO.oo.OO.oo.OO.oo.OO.oo.OO.oo**

_Lolz…That's what __he__ thinks…_


	4. Reflections

Oh…In case I hadn't done it before

Disclaimer: I don't own ANY of the character here. Mina and Ash belong to Archie Comics and all the rest of those people belong to Sega…Or sonic team.

This chapter is kind of boring, but it exists to explain some things and set the stage for the following ones…Which will be, well, a bit more…Well, you'll see.

OooOOooOOooO

The sun gave way to more heat than the mongoose imagined. She had decided to step out of the Hedgehog's apartment-and her constant suspicious attitude-and take in some of the morning sun.

The small city was quiet without them. There was not a rush of camera men or reporters tapping endlessly in front of Sonic's empty apartment. She couldn't hear the aggravating swoons of the local high school girls as they gushed over the blue blur's presence. There was not a single breaking report of one of his heroic deeds as she passed the electronic store. And when she at last arrived at Station Square's central park, she did not hear the hot dog vendor calling her friend's name. It was a ghost town.

She slumped onto a nearby bench and stared hopelessly into the autumn trees. She let the changing leaves fall on her carelessly. The town was missing the super sonic hedgehog…But she…all she could think of was the other.

She closed her eyes solemnly. Why? It didn't make sense….How she was so taken by one she hardly spoke a single word to, as apposed to a boy like Ash, whom she has known for so long. When she first met him, she knew he was different…Yet this was far greater. Was it his physique? His eyes? No…

No. She remembered now.

It was perhaps the one actual question she had ever asked the darker hero. She was naïve then; just an amateur vocalist who was crushing on the true blue hedgehog that everyone had their eyes on.

She was Sonic's arm candy that day. Of course, back then she was more than excited to be. He was taking her to a ceremony in his and Shadow's honor for the anniversary of the heroes of the eclipse canon incident. It was exciting.

It was right before she stepped into the Limo to join the others. She looked back and noticed the dark hedgehog staring at the vehicle blankly. How could he be in such a mood in a day completely commemorating him!?

_Hey Shadow, Aren't you coming!? They are awarding you both with medals in front of the entire city!_

It was the way he looked at her in his…disgust. It was his shock, his distaste…His crimson eyes bleeding just a tiny whole into her fragile heart.

_The fact we are still able to walk this planet today is all I need. Seeing such a commotion insults me, and it should insult him as well. _

She shuddered. Of course she didn't agree with what he said…after all, they were only trying to thank them…But it was his shining selflessness. Yes, Sonic was all too willing to save the day…But the blue hedgehog swallowed the fame. He was so popular, that the citizens often confused him of being their _only_ savior.

And yet, here was this mysterious black hedgehog that was just as satisfied without even being recognized.

She shivered and opened her eyes slightly to continue staring at the blank sky. _Damn no wonder it's cold…I've been out here for longer than I thought. _She took a deep breath and forced herself on her feet to walk back towards her usual…She hoped the pink one was in a better mood.

The door to her apartment was slightly open. Mina went pale, a million thoughts running through her at once. This wasn't normal…

She gulped and inched closer, pushing the tiny oak door slowly inward…Then she screamed.

They were back.

"Amy, being suffocated doesn't exactly show me much appreciation!"

"Oh, Sonic!! I've missed you so much!! I can't tell you how many times I haven't gotten any sleep, worrying about if you! I Love you love you love you!!"

Sonic took a deep breath "Um…that's great, Amy…"

"There is just one other thing I'd like to say though, love…."

The blue hedgehog didn't have time to protest. The small girl had pulled out that menacing hammer, maybe twice her size, and knocked the poor hero down to the ground, complaining that he hadn't even thought twice about calling. Shadow rolled his eyes and crossed his arms, twitching slightly as his injured arm met his other. He was used to being invisible, but he couldn't understand why the blue one had forced him to come here to witness his own embarrassment.

Sonic at last recovered the strength to stand on his feet, and he smiled widely towards the gaping mongoose, rubbing his head gently. "Heh, well don't just stand there all shocked-like! A small painless hug would be appreciated!"

Mina didn't hear his words. She had her gaze set on the crudely wrapped towel, flaking and hard with dried blood. She hurried past a confused sonic, kneeled down, and grabbed the black hedgehog's arm, ignoring his cry of protest and pain. She looked over his raw wound, turning his arm gently. Shadow bit his lip…more from the shock than from the tiny pricks of pain riding up his shoulders.

She frowned and softly let his arm fall back into its disfigured position.

"This towel isn't helping…You need stitches. I'll do them for you, if you want…"

He stared at her blankly and only nodded, not very sure how to say what he wanted to in words…Why wasn't he just ignored, like always? It was much easier to be silent. This little show of attention made him extremely edgy…

Sonic and Amy exchanged glances. The blue hedgehog coughed and scratched the back of his head, taking in the scene before him. Now he himself wasn't one to be ignored… "Well gee, Mina…It's nice to see you, too…"

The purple mongoose blushed and quickly and turned her head to face him. "Im sorry, Sonic!! Of course I've missed you too; it's just that I was so shocked when I saw Shadow's injuries…What the hell were you guys doing, anyway!? I thought Eggman would be, and I quote 'a snap'." She snapped at the gaping hero, opening the cabinets to find her stitches.

"Um…Well, he was harder than we thought and um…Since we didn't have the emmys, it took us a while to get back, and well, we didn't carry cell phones…"

"You shouldn't have underestimated him then, Sonic!! I mean look at this wound…Im shocked he isn't dying of blood loss!"

Sonic crossed his arms and looked down ashamed. "Well, It could have been worse…The bullet could have killed him on the spot if I hadn't moved him."

"…Bullet?"

"Yeah…That's how he got the wound in the first place, der!! Anyway, I don't like seeing this kind of Dr. stuff, and I promised Amy I'd take her out before our big welcoming party."

The pink girl's cerulean eyes beamed. "You did?!"

"Yeah!! Now lets go…We are gonna be late for dinner at um…um…You know."

Sonic lifted a star-struck Amy bridal style and ran out of the apartment, praying silently that his excuse didn't seem staged. It seemed he was going to need a bit more help with his plan than he thought…

O.oo.OO.oo.O

Mina pulled up a chair and sat by the injured hedgehog, holding his arm in place. She looked at his wound carefully before she began stitching. Had it been caused by a gun, she would have seen the bullet, and the wound would be much more circular than the angular cut she saw before her…Sonic knew of these things…Why would he lie to her?

She began stitching as gently as she could, avoiding his piercing red eyes. She could feel him staring down at her with his puzzled look…Even worse; she felt the awkward cloud above them, holding their tongues to keep the silence alive. This silence wasn't the type she desired, but was the type she feared she would have to encounter.

It would only be a few hours before the others came back; she had to say _something_, something to break this silence that had her hand shaking between stitches.

She wouldn't have to be the one to break the ice, to her surprise.

"That is a unique skill for a vocalist…"

She finished up the stitching and reached into her bag for rubbing alcohol, slightly smiling at his confusion. "Well, I _was_ going to be a nurse, that is, before I discovered how much I loved music."

He nodded mechanically as he inspected her work. The pain continued to crawl up his shoulders, yet he was glad his own blood was no longer escaping. He lowered his arm and looked back at the resourceful mongoose. He had always had little communication with her since they met.

The purple songoose could never be found away from the blue hero. It sickened him. It was the way she had looked at him…Such a beaming admiration, as if she had seen god himself. Her melodic, passionate voice carried throughout the stage, but her songs were never for others, or for herself. They were for him; always, no matter if the song itself carried nothing but nonsense. Always she would focus her sparkling emeralds' on his face…Waiting, waiting for his and only his approval…An approval she knew would never belong to her alone.

But that was a thing of the past. Her eyes were no less hypnotizing than he remembered, yet now he noticed a maturity…a childish spark which had grown to encompass the entire emerald sea within them. Her hair rested calmly, curling beside her face to frame her tender features.

The way in which she ignored her blue hero and attended to his wounds so delicately…He was afraid. He was afraid of how that had made him feel…But more, he was afraid that he had not taken his eyes off the mongoose.

She finally broke eye contact, and looked down at her hands, a bit embarrassed. _Damn…I know I haven't had practice in stitching in a while, but it wasn't __that__ bad…_

"Um…I'm sorry…Remember, I haven't done this in probably months and-"

"Thanks. It feels better."

"Not a problem…I'm glad you're safe. I—we've, missed you."

He inhaled sharply and stood to his feet. "I'd better get going…I'll see you later today, I guess."

He walked towards the door, shutting it quickly behind him. Why…why had she done this to him? How she could lie, bluntly, to his face, and say she had thought about him whilst he was gone. How could she gaze at him in such a way…Talk to him so sweetly, make him feel as if he was physically melting? Bitch.

It took him seconds to reach his small, one bedroom. He had never been too keen on décor. His walls were strictly bare, his floors clean and white. A small kitchen which he never used and a low twin bed were all the small room contained. Anything else would just be more to clean.

He grunted in frustration as he yanked the tiny frig door. Of course there was nothing inside…just moldy bread.

"Damn…"

_Now, now…There is no need to loose your temper on such little things. _

He slammed the door shut, nearly loosing his footing as he shot back. No…A voice?!

"What?! I'm not afraid to tear you the fuck apart!!"

_Such violence! Ah, but I believe that's what makes us connect sooo well. _

Shadow darted his eyes across the empty walls…There was no place for his attacker to hide. The voice had been so clear, ringing loudly into his ears and throughout his conscious…But…why?

_Are you afraid, Shadow!? There is no need to fear a reflection. _

He backed towards his bed and sat tensely. What was he ranting about!?

"What the hell are you talking about…"

_Why don't you go and see for yourself?_

His breaths had quickened at the point. He had only wished he didn't know what the voice meant. He turned, focusing his quivering, ruby eyes towards his only restroom…with a mirror.

He pushed himself on to his feet and creaked the rotting door. He leaned over his sink, tightly gripping the sides as he slowly raised his head to face the glass.

_Boo._


End file.
